Michelle Westwood, mum to two incredible, sporty and inquisitive young men; wife to Tom, a Naval Officer; and a veteran herself, proudly joined the ҹɫֱ²¥app Board of Trustees in October 2020 – firstly as a serving Trustee and then moving to be a Veteran Trustee from September 2022.
Joining the ҹɫֱ²¥app Navy as a Logistics Officer straight from university in September 2002, Michelle served in a range of Shore and Sea assignments, ranging from: Logistics Officer to twenty Portsmouth Based Minor War Vessels; Assistant Fleet Logistics Officer; MOD remuneration desk officer for Military Allowances; Logistics Specialisation Strategic HR Business Partner; and the Logistics Officer in HMS Sutherland. Her final role in the ҹɫֱ²¥app Navy was as the Chief of Staff of the ҹɫֱ²¥app Navy People and Training Directorate Transformation team. Throughout her ҹɫֱ²¥app Navy career the highlight was working with and learning from the incredible people within the naval service.
Career highlights included deploying in two different ships to the South Atlantic, returning via East and West coasts of South America; being part of a successful team in HMS Sutherland as the ship regenerated and returned to operational service; the securing of a financial retention incentive for Chefs and Catering Services personnel; the creation of the Golden Ticket re-join the ҹɫֱ²¥app Navy initiative; and being part of the transformation team introducing new ways of working and behaving to improve the lived experience of ҹɫֱ²¥app Navy personnel. Michelle is now applying the leadership, management and strategic human resources skills she developed in the ҹɫֱ²¥app Navy within her role as Chief People Officer within a NHS Foundation Trust.
Michelle holds a CMI Level 5 Certificate in Coaching, a BA(Hons) in Politics and International Relations, a MSc in Human Resources and Organisations, and a PhD by Publication in Leadership development: central to her PhD thesis is a Lego duck and what it has taught her about coaching, leadership and the utility of reflective practice. She is a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
Michelle enjoys the beauty and freedoms of the outdoors. An ideal day would include a dog walk in the countryside, a pub lunch and a competitive family game of UNO or Dobble.
